Met Office gives verdict on August heatwave as Brits pray for the sun to return

03 August 2023 , 13:14

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Met Office gives verdict on August heatwave as Brits pray for the sun to return

The Met Office have offered Brits a glimmer of hope with their latest verdict on the return of summer.

Largely unsettled weather has dominated for much of the last month, with the last few days in particular seeing disruption torrential downpours and gale-force winds. Multiple areas of the country also recorded record or near-record rainfall for the month of July.

Dull and unseasonably cold temperatures have also been the norm when it hasn't been raining, in sharp contrast to the memorable heatwave summer of last year.

The long spell of grim weather has been caused by the jet stream, a cross-Atlantic air current which has remained stuck in position over the British Isles for several weeks, resulting in stormy weather.

The British summer could finally return within a matter of days, according to the Met Office (PA)

More adverse conditions are coming in this weekend thanks to another blast from the pattern, and weather warnings have already been issued for Saturday - but there now some slim signs of hope emerging in the week beyond. The jet stream may finally be shifting, releasing us from the chain of stormy clouds and allowing for more clearer skies and balmy conditions.

Gales, snow and rain to batter country today with 80mph wind gusts

Met Office Deputy Chief Meteorologist, Steven Keates explained: "For the latter half of next week, there are some signals of a shift in the jet stream which may allow for high pressure to build in for southern areas of the UK, increasing the likelihood of some drier weather, at least for a time. However, at this range, the details are quite uncertain and there’s still a chance of rain to areas further north. As always, details will become clearer with a shorter lead time."

Another long-range forecast from the Met Office however played down the likelihood of "prolonged or excessive heat", with the chance of a heatwave in August being considerably lower than previous years. Some forecasters have already picked out one day next week as the start of the fresh phase of summery weather.

Accompanying an image showing a clear weather map for next Thursday, a tweet from BBC Weather's official Twitter account read yesterday: "We have an important announcement for those fed up with being rained on. After 6 weeks of being AWOL, we have finally found summer."

Weather maps from independent forecaster WXCharts meanwhile shows highs of 28C developing in southern areas of England by Friday 4 August and remaining warm into the weekend. Such warm conditions have not been seen since June, which was officially the warmest on record and saw hosepipe bans introduced for the south east - a far cry from the deluge that has followed into the weeks since.

Benedict Tetzlaff-Deas